Applying ink by using a writing utensil hails back to the times Pharaohs, when scribes wrote on papyrus scrolls using reeds. In general, writing ends of nibs in pens (hereinbelow referred to as tips) may be for example round, stub, italic, calligraphic, and/or oblique. The exact shape affects the shape and thickness of the written characters, which also depend on how the pen is held, such as what the orientation of the tip length and width is relative to the media, in which hand the pen is held etc (see http://www.pentrace.net/article052501085.html).
U.S. Pat. No. 293,545 to Waterman describes a fountain pen having the following components: a slit nib; a barrel, which holds an ink reservoir, and a cap, which fits over the nib of the pen to protect it from damage. The slit at the tip controls the flow of ink. The pen operates by air inducing flow of ink from the barrel to the nib tip, and capillary action along the slit at the tip inducing flow of ink along the nib, to provide a steady and even flow of ink from the fountain pen.
Another type of sophisticated writing tool is a calligraphic pen. Today calligraphy is performed using special writing utensils in which the tip may be flat rather than slanted typical in fountain pens. The flat end allows for applying strokes of adjustable width according to the rotation of a handheld barrel during the process of writing. Although ballpoint pens have replaced the fountain pen as the universal writing tool, fountain and calligraphic pens continue to be popular with collectors as well as those who desire a more elegant and sophisticated writing tool.
For example, calligraphic style of writing and tips are used for example in writing Jewish scrolls.
Writing on Jewish scrolls must be manually performed on leather parchment using special black ink. Very high demands are made of the ink. It must be coal black, without even a slightest tint, highly viscous to prevent it from soaking and spreading on the scroll and to allow it to emboss the characters and symbols, and durable and resilient in the face of centuries of existence. The ink is usually made of: coal, gals (small epiphyllous balls on oak leaves), wood rosin, and blue vitriol. This mixture makes the ink ineffaceable.
The special characteristics of the ink as well as other special religious requirements, pose rigorous requirements on the writing technique, as well as on the suitable utensil. The tip of a quill is traditionally used for writing scripture on parchment. The bottom part is specially prepared using a knife or other sharp edged instrument, by cutting and suitably configuring the tip.
The viscosity of the special ink requires pressing of the tip to the scroll to allow expansion of the slit of the tip and thus flow of the ink. However, the rough hide of the scroll quickly wears out soft quill tips, consequently requiring frequent and lengthy sharpening of the quill, and it is difficult to reproduce the tip in a desired profile.
Other feasible writing utensils may be prepared from reeds or thermoplastic imitation quills. The flexible tips allow easy expansion of the slit for broad strokes and application of light thin strokes by minimal expansion of the slit; however, rigid nibs have several important advantages as they tend to produce a cleaner, more defined writing line, and their ink flow is likely to be more consistent.
Indeed, the first fountain pen nibs were made of gold alloys, often dipped in a hard metal called iridium for strength and resistance to corrosion and wear. However, when gold alloy nibs became too expensive to mass-produce, steel was adopted as the material of choice.
IL patent 131687 describes a specially configured and dimensioned nib, for traditionally writing Jewish scripture on parchment. The nib is described as made of material selected from the group consisting of a metal, a metal alloy, and a plastic.
Despite the advantages related above, metal nibs are religiously problematic for writing in Jewish scriptures. Moreover, the special ink tends to corrode the metal (to counter precipitation in the ink, the ink is typically made more acidic with vinegar or even hydrochloric or sulfuric acid, which tend to cause galvanic corrosion of the nib, particularly in the slit). Furthermore, the rough scroll erodes even metal nibs as well, so that periodic grinding of the nibs is required. Even nibs of pens such as fountain pens, used for writing on plain smooth paper, may require periodic grinding maintenance. Although the grinding of a metal nib is obviously required less frequently than the sharpening of a quill tip, proper and satisfactory grinding of the metal nibs can be very difficult to master (http://www.marcuslink.com/pens/aboutpens/ludwig-tan.html).
Another problem with quills is that they require frequent dipping in an inkwell. Pens suitably configured for writing Jewish scriptures, equipped with an ink reservoir such as in modern pens, would save this effort. However, leaks of ink from various pens with ink reservoirs can be a significant problem. Such leaks may be caused by excessive pressure on the nibs or tips, which may cause excessive widening of the slit, or changes in the viscosity of the ink from body (hand) warmth and/or changes in the room temperature. Such leaks might disqualify a piece of scroll which has been toiled over for many hours.
U.S. 2008181715 describes a fountain pen for traditional writing Jewish of scripture on parchment, that includes a configured nib, an ink loader for feeding ink to said nib, a reservoir for storing said ink, a piston for creating a customable pressure inside said reservoir, and a hollow barrel having an open front and rear ends for housing said piston, ink loader, nib and reservoir.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,765 describes a composite ceramics material suited for balls of ball-point pens, and a method of manufacturing composite ceramics balls for ball-point pens, that have affinity for both oil-based ink and water-based ink. The composite ceramics, whose main components are mullite and zirconia (ZrO2) at the ratio of 50-95% to 5-50% by weight, is polished into mirror-finished balls and then chemical processing or physical processing is performed on the ball surfaces to form indentations in the ball surfaces.
Despite the many developments of writing utensils, there is an unmet need for simple fountain/calligraphic pens that write flawlessly, have a pleasant writing feel, and transform one's handwriting for the better—a pen that is an extension of the hand, rather than an impediment to it. ]
There is a need for pens that allow easy control and adjustment of the flow of ink; there is also need of pens that require minimal upkeep.
Another aim is to improve calligraphic writing efficiency.